need help in regards of a possible lawsuit
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Hi,
Last year in the period of around September, my mom suffered a minor stroke and we admitted her to a certain hospital which I would not want to name.She recovered well and in 3 weeks, she was back to normal.
At the end of her hospital stay, the doctor, his name too I will not reveal, gave her a certain medicine which we didn't know my mom is allergic too.This caused her severe rashes and the doctor stopped it immediately.
2 weeks later, my mom had to go for a check up and collect her medicine.Once again, the doctor gave my mom the same medicine.My mom did not know it's the same medicine as she doesn't know how to check and differentiate(she's not a doctor).We asked the doctor is this medicine okay, he said yes.
Needless to say, my mom suffered severe rashes and her face bloated up.She ended up in an isolation ward.This mistake caused by the doctor had led to my mom to suffer from from a new illness.She has suffered alot and had to bear alot of hospital bills(around 7k).Luckily, my mom is working in the govt. sector, and she happens to be a 1WO, so the subsidy has helped financially.
However, we still find that the hospital has not given us a proper answer and no form of mediation has been done.This is clearly the doctor's error and my mom has to suffer for it.
We would like to file for a lawsuit soon, but due to a lack of experience, I would like to know what should we do first.We have all the medical records, photos of the my mom's face, hands before and after the medicine.We even have the letter which the doctor had prescribed the medicine after knowing my mom is allergic to it.
All help is appreciated, my mom is the sole bread winner of the family now as my father had passed away in 2005.I have a younger brother in secondary school too.
Thanks in advance.
Regards,
Ash -
how you going to proof this story is real?
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What prove you need?The medical evidence?I don't want to post here, but if you're willing to meet up I can produce all the evidence we have, the medical records, doctor giving the medicines and other things.Originally posted by Kinboat:how you going to proof this story is real?
We have now requested for a a change of doctor, and things are now better.But my mom suffered pain and it was very traumatising for her, we do not want the doctor to go scot free.And not to mention the unnessacary hospital bills. -
Did your mum tell the doctor about any drug allergies?
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She told her about her current ones, unknown ones we don't know right?Originally posted by Darkness_hacker99:Did your mum tell the doctor about any drug allergies?
Then she was first given the medicine she's allergic to(but nobody know she's allergic to this).So she developed rashes and she stopped the medicine.After that, she went for her check-up and collect her medicine, the doctor gave her the same one.My mom asked was it okay, he said yes.We have the records to prove this.
This is a total blasphemy to the trade of medicine and the doctor did not even apologize once. -
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ThanksOriginally posted by Darkness_hacker99:
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How's your mum now?
If the doctor is at wrong, I hope he will get it.
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Yes, I downloaded that and the complain procedure form.Originally posted by Darkness_hacker99:
Do you think I should consult SMC first or hire a lawyer first? -
Consult SMC first...at least you'll have a rough idea of your chances of winning a civil case.Originally posted by DjMatrix:Yes, I downloaded that and the complain procedure form.
Do you think I should consult SMC first or hire a lawyer first? -
My mom now is normal, but due to the severe rashes she developed on the second time, she canot do alot of things such as eating seafood, became weak and breathless easily and she cannot even take panadol extra, only can take the regular panadol.Originally posted by Darkness_hacker99:How's your mum now?
If the doctor is at wrong, I hope he will get it.
This is consider quite severe as my mom is working in SAF as 1WO, she's gone though NS in the 70s and now her career maybe on the hold due to this error.She has served in SAF for 32 years now, so it'll be a pity if she has to retire early due to this f*cking doctor's error. -
Complain against a medical practitioner and lawsuit against medical practitioner is two different thing.
I suggest you handle one at a time. It's very taxing to handle both together( in my opinion). -
too bad so sad sorry no cureOriginally posted by DjMatrix:My mom now is normal, but due to the severe rashes she developed on the second time, she canot do alot of things such as eating seafood, became weak and breathless easily and she cannot even take panadol extra, only can take the regular panadol.
This is consider quite severe as my mom is working in SAF as 1WO, she's gone though NS in the 70s and now her career maybe on the hold due to this error.She has served in SAF for 32 years now, so it'll be a pity if she has to retire early due to this f*cking doctor's error. -
Ok, please go back to the hole you crawled out from.Originally posted by Kinboat:too bad so sad sorry no cure
Thanks. -
Around 2 years ago, my v v v v good colleague father got into hospital.
I cant remember what illness he got, but its pretty serious and he stayed in hospital for like 2 or 3 months.
He was recovering, but better.
A day before discharge, the doctor gave him a new medication, which is suppose to keep his condition down.
On the day when he is supposed to discharged, my friend's dad passed away. They believe its due to the medication and thats what the doctor said too. Sadly, no compensation was given, and after advices from lawyer, lawsuit against them will only do yourself bad instead of them. -
You definitely need legal counsel. I think you have a strong case, base on the facts you have provided. If you cannot afford to engage legal counsel, you can go here:
http://app.minlaw.gov.sg/lab/default.asp
WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR LEGAL AID?
Who is eligible for legal aid?
The services of the Legal Aid Bureau are for poor Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents who are in Singapore and come within the ambit of the scheme and meet the requirements of financial Means Test.
Briefly, to qualify for legal aid,
(a) you have to be a Singapore Citizen or a Singapore Permanent Resident and is present in Singapore;
(b) you have to satisfy the ”Means Test”. Your disposable income, that is, your income for the past 12 months before the date of application for legal aid and after deducting prescribed allowances, must not exceed $10,000/-, and your disposable capital must not exceed $10,000/-; and
(c) there must be merits in your case. (The ”Merits Test” )
If you do not satisfy the Means Test but are facing hardship, the Director of Legal Aid may extend legal aid to you (subject to the requirements of the Merits Test) if:
1. You satisfy certain statutory provisions; and
2. It appears to him in his absolute discretion to be reasonable to do so to relieve hardship.
If you intend to hire a lawyer to file a lawsuit, you have to be aware of how it charges. It can be as of follows:
1)Hourly based. This option is usally the costliest of all. The more complicated your case, the more billable hours are needed for preparation and gathering of documents.
2)Contingency fee. This means if you lose, you don't have to pay. But take in mind that any expenses that may(almost certainly will) incur during the legal process, like experts view, document fees, court fees, etc, are all chargeble. However, if you win, your lawyer will usually take a cut from the damages awarded to you, the plaintiff. If you're lucky or your lawyer is good, she can even demand that the defendant pay your part or all of your court fees. As this option usually means you have to pay your lawyers a larger amount if you win, u should only consider this option if the lawyer is taking a bigger risk than you.
3)Fixed fee. Win or lose, you pay the stipulated amount as agreed earlier. After deciding on retaining the lawyer, she may request that you pay a deposit, or also called a retaining fee. After the case, you need only to pay the balance.
In your case, I think your lawyer will sue the doctor for malpractice. The damages that might be awarded, if you win, depends on the loss of future earnings of your mother, hospital fees incurred as a result of the doctor's negligence, and many other factors your lawyers can possibly creatively come up with.
It is most important that you can find a lawyer who is good and willing to help you all the way. There are lawyers out there who just want your money but don't give a shit about whether you win or lose.
Do not take my words for gospel, I am in no position. Just helping out as much as I can. Remember, what you pay is what you get. -
Oh, I think you can also try to find out if this doctor has any previous complains to him/her. It'll greatly help your case. Consult your lawyer as to how this may be done.
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http://www.sgforums.com/?action=thread_display&thread_id=265757&page=1
This thread has some good points raised by a few forumnites. HTH.
Sue till their pants drop. -
Speaking from experience, the toughest challenge will be to get a doctor who will testify that the other guy screwed up. A few years ago, my old man was given very poor treatment by the resident doctor at a nursing home, as a result of which he ended up with a huge bedsore 30cm across and 2cm deep - they ended up taking out a huge chunk of flesh.
Despite my brother-in-law being a judge, there was little we could do about it. We tried getting a doctor to testify that the other doctor's actions consituted neglect but found that when it comes to lawsuits, the medical fraternity was a very closed shop. I can't say I blame the doctors for being hesitant to testify - it's a very small world in the medical community, and testifying could be seen as betraying the profession.
Anyway, just be aware that you might have to look around to find a doctor willing to provide evidence or testimony on your behalf. All the best! -
Frankly, it's not worth suing... you will probably waste more money than needed, and getting someone else to prove the negligence part... is not easy.
I've tried that before... don't wish to try again. -
Wheather u bring this to the court depends on this.
DOES SHE HAVE HER ALLERGIC DECLARED IN HER MEDICAL REPORT BEFORE THE DOC GAVE HER THE MEDICATION? -
DOES SHE HAVE HER ALLERGIC DECLARED IN HER MEDICAL REPORT BEFORE THE DOC GAVE HER THE MEDICATION?
Read the first post. It's stated very clearly. -
Hmm mixed reviews, but I'll check with SMC first.We have not spoken to the hospital about this yet, maybe see is it possible to settle for an outside of court settlement.The chief doctor had spoken to my mom, and tried to reason out, but we will speak to the people at SMC and see how we'll carry on.
The doctor is a young one, probably late 20s.Even though he's young, it doesn't gives him the right to ill treat his patients.My mom has spoken to a director at Mindef, he has such experience.He said to try to settle with hospital out of court but if it doesn't works then a lawsuit seems unavoidable. -
I READ BUT U DID NOT UNDERSTAND.Originally posted by ndmmxiaomayi:Read the first post. It's stated very clearly.
IT SAYS THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHEATHER THEIR MUM WAS ALLERGY TO ANY MEDICINE WHICH SIMPLY MEANS THE MEDICAL REPORT OF THEIR MUM ISSUED TO THE DOC WAS PERHAPS NO DECLARED ALLERGIC TO ANY MEDICINE.
IF THERE WAS NO ALLERGY DECLARED BEFORE THE MEDICINE WAS GIVEN,THEN NO CASE.
DOCTOR INNOCENT AND IT'S YOUR BLUNDER.